Recently put in a new battery. '91 classic with 198k, starts but the crank is very slow at first and then it goes. It did this with the old battery too. I left the lights on the other day for just an hour or so and it was stone dead when I tried to start it, it did not even attempt to turn. I would think it should be able to at least attempt to start in that situation, seems the starter is not getting the juice. I had a similar issue in my series once and it turned out to be an old corroded battery cable. Any other things to look for from your experiences?
Weak starts with new battery
- Thread starter KevinNY
- Start date
Definitely check that positive cable and also check the ground strap that goes directly to the starter. If they "look" good, do a voltage drop test.
I removed and cleaned the contacts on the positive cable and it seemed a bit better but I need a couple of days to see if the difference is real. I'll probably just go buy a universal cable at the parts store and change it and remove and clean the ground strap contacts at the same time.
Try jumper cables too. You basically bypass the battery cable. If it starts, you know the cable is shot.